Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Estonia

17/08/2026

17/08/2026

The Venice International Film Festival, organized by La Biennale di Venezia, is among the world’s most influential cinematic platforms, and its choices carry real weight in what the international cultural community recognizes and legitimizes.

It is for this reason that the inclusion of Ilya Khrzhanovskiy’s film “DAU” in the Main Competition of Venezia 83, where it will compete for the Golden Lion, raises profound concern.

Russia has long used culture as an instrument of state policy and hybrid warfare. For the Kremlin, culture is a way to restore to sanctioned figures the respectability that politics has taken from them; to legitimize its presence where its tanks cannot reach; and to appropriate the history of the very lands it seeks to erase. Every prestigious platform that accepts a Kremlin-financed project becomes, for Moscow, a test – of how far International institutions are prepared to tolerate Russia`s crimes, and of what they will call “neutral” while the war of aggression against Ukraine continues.

A careful study of background of the “DAU” film illustrates our point. It should be recalled that the project was financed by Sergei Adoniev, a Russian businessman sanctioned by both the United States and Ukraine and credibly linked to Putin’s regime. The film’s director, Ilya Khrzhanovskiy, headed a cultural project funded by Kremlin-connected Russian oligarchs that was widely criticized by Ukrainian and international intellectuals. The film’s lead actor, Teodor Currentzis, accepted Russian citizenship granted by Vladimir Putin and built his musical career through funding from sanctioned Russian state banks and state-backed cultural institutions.

We are calling upon the Venice International Film Festival and the wider cultural community to recognize how Russia weaponizes culture as an instrument of its hybrid war, and to stop mistaking Kremlin-backed cultural projects for politically neutral ones.

17/08/2026

It may be hard to comprehend what 975 years means. Not just the changing of seasons, but generations of people, societies, technologies and even empires coming and going.

Yet some places have stood through it all – and now the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra marks its 975th anniversary.

For almost a millennium, the Lavra has been a place where culture and knowledge have flourished. It brought together scholars, writers, artists, craftsmen and physicians, leaving a lasting mark on Ukraine’s and Europe’s spiritual and cultural life.

The Lavra’s history is a powerful reminder of why it must be protected – as a part of Ukraine’s national memory and of the world’s shared cultural heritage.

Photos Заярний Павло | Київ | стріт-фотограф | відеограф | мобілограф

17/08/2026

15 серпня Посол України в Естонії Володимир Боєчко долучився онлайн до конференції «Де зустрічаються шляхи», організованої MTÜ Ukraina kaasmaalaskond Sillamäe Vodograi за підтримки Міністерства культури Естонії та Інтеграційного фонду.

Конференція була присвячена перезапуску інтерактивної «Мандрівницької мапи українців в історії Естонії» — проєкту, що об’єднує місця, пов’язані з українцями, які в різні періоди жили, навчалися й працювали в Естонії та залишили свій слід в історії країни.

Вітаючи учасників конференції, Посол наголосив: «За кожною точкою на цій мапі — людська доля, подія, історія. Разом вони допомагають нам краще зрозуміти, наскільки глибокими й багатогранними є зв’язки між Україною та Естонією. Наші народи об’єднує досвід боротьби за свободу, збереження своєї мови, культури та національної ідентичності».

Особливо символічно, що проєкт отримує нове життя напередодні 35-ї річниці Незалежності України, нагадуючи про глибокі історичні зв’язки між нашими народами, спільне прагнення до свободи та цінності, які сьогодні лежать в основі солідарності Естонії з Україною.

Посол висловив щиру вдячність Ларисі Житнік, Світлані Сташкевич та Українському земляцтву Сілламяе «Водограй» за цю важливу ініціативу, ґрунтовну дослідницьку роботу, а також збереження й популяризацію української історичної та культурної спадщини в Естонії.

17/08/2026

UKR/EN

🇺🇦🇪🇪 Дорогі друзі!
Запрошуємо на концерт «Естонсько-українські музичні мости»! 🎶

Організатори: Конгрес українців Естонії та Українське земляцтво Естонії у співпраці з Посольством України в Естонії.
У програмі — твори Михайла Вербицького, Хейно Еллера та інших українських і естонських композиторів у виконанні камерного оркестру Braveama під керуванням Олександра Бражника.

📅 24 серпня, 18:30
📍 Mustpeade Maja (P**k 26, Tallinn)

Концерт присвячений 35-річчю Незалежності України та Дню відновлення незалежності Естонії відбудеться у прекрасній історичній залі Будинку Братства Чорноголових, у атмосфері української та естонської музики. 💙💛

Приходьте з родиною та друзями!
______________________________
🇺🇦🇪🇪 Dear friends!
We warmly invite you to the concert “Estonian-Ukrainian Musical Bridges”! 🎶

The event is organised by the Congress of Ukrainians of Estonia and the Ukrainian Association of Estonia, in cooperation with the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia.

The programme will feature works by Mykhailo Verbytsky, Heino Eller, and other Ukrainian and Estonian composers, performed by the Braveama Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Oleksandr Brazhnyk.

📅 24 August, 18:30
📍 Mustpeade Maja (House of the Blackheads), P**k 26, Tallinn

Dedicated to the 35th Anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence and Estonia’s Restoration of Independence, the concert will take place in the beautiful historic hall of the House of the Blackheads, bringing Ukrainian and Estonian music together on this special occasion. 💙💛

Come and join us with your family and friends!

16/08/2026

All night and into the morning, Russia attacked Ukrainian cities across different regions of the country, using various means of terror.

▪️ In Kyiv and the surrounding region, Russian attacks injured six people. Fires broke out and buildings were damaged at a market and in non-residential areas.

▪️ In the Dnipro region, Russia attacked a fire and rescue unit in Marhanets five times. The attacks damaged the unit’s building and three fire engines. In Kryvyi Rih, two people were killed and another 14 were injured.

▪️ In Sumy, one person was killed and another injured after a drone struck a civilian vehicle.

▪️ In Sloviansk, Donetsk region, Russian aircraft struck a residential area with high-explosive aerial bombs. A residential building and an outbuilding caught fire, while 22 private houses were damaged.

This week alone, 13 regions of Ukraine came under attack. Russia launched more than 1,550 attack drones, nearly 1,560 aerial bombs, and 62 missiles, most of them various types of ballistic missiles.
We thank our rescuers, police officers, and medical workers for their dedication and readiness to help restore people’s lives. This, combined with practical steps by our partners to protect Ukraine’s skies, can help save lives more effectively. We cannot allow European interceptors to remain in storage while North Korean ballistic missiles destroy infrastructure and take lives in Ukraine.

15/08/2026

Дорогі друзі! 🇺🇦🇪🇪

Запрошуємо вас долучитися до традиційної Ходи вдячності «Україна та Естонія разом!», присвяченої Дню Незалежності України.

Хода - це можливість разом відзначити нашу Незалежність, висловити вдячність Естонії та естонському народу за незмінну підтримку України й ще раз продемонструвати нашу єдність і солідарність.

Організатор заходу — Конгрес українців Естонії.

Приєднуйтеся!

15/08/2026

It may be hard to comprehend what 975 years means. Not just the changing of seasons, but generations of people, societies, technologies and even empires coming and going.

Yet some places have stood through it all – and today, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra marks its 975th anniversary.

Established in 1051, the Lavra is a Christian sacred site and a witness to the continuity of Ukraine’s history and tradition of statehood. Over the centuries, it became a centre of chronicle writing, book printing, theological thought, education, medicine, architecture, icon painting, engraving, music and the arts.

It was part of the European and Byzantine world long before the emergence of the Russian imperial tradition, which later sought to appropriate and erase its Ukrainian heritage. Restoring the Ukrainian voice of the Lavra today means restoring these historical connections — from its founders, Anthony and Theodosius, to the princes, hetmans, scholars, artists, benefactors, museum professionals and restorers who shaped and preserved it across the centuries.

Yet this nearly thousand-year-old complex, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, is still endangered today by Russia’s war against Ukraine. On 15 June 2026, during a massive Russian attack on Kyiv, a strike drone deliberately hit the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, damaging around 80% of its roof.

After 975 years, the Lavra’s history is a powerful reminder of why it must be protected – as a part of Ukraine’s national memory and of the world’s shared cultural heritage.

15/08/2026

Acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha expressed solidarity with NATO member states and stressed that Ukraine condemns Russia’s recent violations of the airspace of Poland and Romania.

💬 “Russia is testing NATO. Each new violation probes Allied readiness, seeks to push the boundaries of what Moscow can get away with, and raises the stakes for the next provocation. Ukraine has seen this pattern before: when Russia meets hesitation, it escalates. When it meets strength, it recalculates,” Andrii Sybiha noted.

He emphasized that this is why strengthening Ukraine’s air defense matters for the security of the entire region. Russia must understand that every attempt to test our collective resolve will make Ukraine and NATO stronger, more prepared, and more united – not less.

15/08/2026

Just months ago, this was a place where people simply lived, worked, and raised their children. Today, entire districts of Druzhkivka in Ukraine’s Donetsk region lie in ruins because of Russia’s attacks.

Russia continues its deliberate campaign to destroy Ukrainian cities. More pressure on the aggressor is needed right now to stop these atrocities.